Oklahoma Academic Standard 2. The student will examine Oklahoma’s geography and how people of Oklahoma interact with their environment.

Objective 2.1. Examine Oklahoma’s political and physical features.
A. Identify the state of Oklahoma using relative location, absolute location (latitude and longitude), direction, scale, size, and shape using physical and political maps.
B. Interpret thematic maps of Oklahoma with the essential map elements of title, legend, scale, and directional indicators. 

F.  Identify the six states bordering Oklahoma on a map.

In a Nutshell

Students should continue to develop their skills of mapping through the frequent use of different types of maps, locating specific places by both relative location and the routine use of latitudinal/longitudinal coordinates. Students should also create multiple maps of human and physical features of our state, using map elements appropriately.

Teacher Action 

Student Action 

• Provide opportunities for students to describe the state's human and physical environment through the use of geographic representations, including aerial photographs. 

• Assist students to interpret physical and political maps in order to locate the absolute and relative geographic location of significant natural and human features of the state.

• Ask and answer geographic questions, using geographic information about the student’s community and state. 

• Create and use maps, graphs, and other simple geographic models to describe the physical and human features of the community and state. 

Key Concepts 

Misconceptions 

• absolute location, relative location, longitude, latitude, parallel, meridian, Equator

• political map, physical map

• scale, legend, cardinal directions, intermediate directions

• Students may need frequent and repeated practice before mastering the concept and tools (latitude and longitude system) associated with the absolute location of a place. 

• Students may have the perception that our state can be located based solely on relative location to neighboring states, as opposed to understanding that regions can be determined by many criteria. 

Instructional Resources

Access suggested instructional resources correlated to the learning standard and objective.